This week the biggest fashion news has been the Myer and David Jones shows – who’s in, who’s out, and why David Jones found 85 new designers. So what’s happening in the rest of the world? RESCU’s here to bring you up to speed, from tuxedos to 50 Shades Of Grey…
He’s now the greatest Olympian in history, with the biggest haul of medals ever.
Now swimmer Michael Phelps is going high-fashion.
He joins an elite company as an ambassador for Louis Vuitton, in a campaign shot by Annie Liebowitz – and the shot is already causing ripples in fashion circles.
Phelps is posed in a Speedo in a bathtub, with a Louis Vuitton bag casually slung beside it, athletics-bag style.
It’s got the familiar Liebowitz look – Annie has done most of Vuitton’s campaigns, including shooting Bono and Gorbachev with the signature Vuitton-print suitcases.
The look is certainly arresting, and it was clearly shot pre-Olympics when Phelps’s physique was at its height.
However, Vuitton have cleverly waited till after the Games ended to announce the much-hyped campaign.
Many athletes who won big at the Games are now looking for fashion endorsements. Phelps’s swimming team-mate, the grill-wearing and minorly insufferable Ryan Lochte, has done interviews saying he wants to produce a clothing line, and many of Great Britain’s golden athletes are flooded with offers.
However, Phelps has made the biggest move – it’s difficult to get more high-fashion than this.
Image: Phelps for Louis Vuitton.
She’s been the head of American Vogue for so long that it’s difficult to think of any way other than Anna’s way.
However, this week Anna Wintour recalled that her first cover was so ground-breaking the printers sent it back to ask if there was a mistake.
What was the issue? Several, apparently.
For one, it mixed couture – a Christian Lacroix top, “very Like A Virgin” – with blue jeans, partially because the model couldn’t fit into the Lacroix skirt which matched.
For another, it was shot on an open street and had the appearance of a casual snapshot: closed eyes, hair in the face.
It was, of course, shot by fashion maestro Peter Lindbergh, but it was a massive change of pace for the previously elegant and mannered Vogue, and caused a mighty stir when it appeared on newsstands in November 1988.
Wintour recalled her first cover for a series of celebrations of the 120th anniversary of Vogue. Yes, it’s been around for more than a century.
If you have time, do scroll through the archives of Vogue’s hand-drawn covers from the 1910s, 20s and 30s – they remain classic art and are some of the most highly collected pieces of fashion memorabilia in the world.
Image: Anna Wintour’s first Vogue cover.
We knew it couldn’t be very long before the record-breaking book made its way into merchandise.
Now EL James’s popular book 50 Shades Of Grey has producers on board for a clothing line.
It’s all in the very early stages: the rights to clothing have been bought, numerous distributors are on board, and 50 Shades-branded products should be in America within the year.
The clothing? Sleepwear, of course.
Apparently the main focus will be affordable lingerie, including garters and tights, but there will also be more prudish pyjamas, T-shirts and even hoodies.
That’s not entering into the spirit of the flesh-baring, salacious bestseller, surely.
However, the agency in charge of the rights predicts it’ll be a hit, competing even with Twilight clothing as a market smash.
Rescu. isn’t sure if some of the book’s edgier components will make it into the clothing line. Leather and studs, anyone?
Image: 50 Shades Of Grey.
It’s been a great week for new, edgy fashion inspirations to get their due.
First Pink, the punk princess, became a new face of Covergirl – and now she’s joined by Janelle Monae.
Not familiar with Monae? She’s a singer and rapper from America with an outstanding sense of style, and Rescu. wants all her looks in our closets.
The signature Monae look is a fitted tuxedo with white shirt, bow tie and two-tone shoes. Androgyny is in, but Monae pairs it with impeccable hair and precise cut.
The female tuxedo is a classic: every woman should own one. It’s been a part of the essential woman’s wardrobe ever since Yves St Laurent produced his famous ‘Le Smoking’.
And Monae’s take is part-1930s, part-futuristic: big hair, huge earrings, vibrant lipstick, and flat shoes, all the better for dancing.
The key to a tuxedo is fit, fit, fit. Get one professionally altered if you can. A jacket needs to be nipped at just the right point, and the shoulders must be trimmed to meet the line of your own.
Details at the fastening are very in: chains, brocade, elaborate belts. Simplicity, however, is always the most chic option, and a simple button will serve you well.
Lapels should ideally be a contrasting, luxe material like silk or suede. Cuffs and hem height are up to you – Monae wears them high, to give more room for dancing and display, but if you wear them with heels you might want them longer.
What are you waiting for? Get your tux on.
Image: Janelle Monae.
